After breakfast we took a taxi to the airport to pick up the rental car. I get so frustrated renting cars. No matter who you go with, the price you sign up for is never the price you end up paying. No matter how many boxes you tick when reserving the car and think the price is inclusive of that it never is and it always ends up costing double and today was no exception.
So car sorted...a jeep-we rented a jeep! Off to Gailinburg at the edge of the Great Smokey Mountains some 200 miles from Nashville. Wide open roads, speed limit of 70 nearly the whole way. Zero outside but very warm in the car!
We stopped off about halfway at Crossville to meet Betsy and George. Diane and Betsy have been blogging for over 5 years but had never met and since we were somewhat going past, we stopped in. Lovely couple and Diane was glad we stopped.
Continued on to Gaitlinburg and allowing for losing another hour due to crossing a time zone, we arrived at Laurel Springs Bed and Breakfast at 4. Again, a very cute place.
Sorted our rooms out and as we didn't have lunch (who could fit anything in after that huge breakfast?) we headed into town. Somewhere we got the idea that Gaitlinburg was a quaint quiet town, maybe because it only has 4000 people with homes averaging $135,000. Then we found out that 9 million people visit the Great Smokey Mtns each year-and people have to stay somewhere.
They say the population of these small towns increases to 50,000plus. This is the off peak season and traffic was almost at a standstill I town.
We had to wait 45 min for a table at one of the restaurants (that probably sat 100 people) footpaths we're number to bumper people walking everywhere and it is 0C! The shops looked so cute and there is so much to do. There is only one Main Street in town!
Again we had delicious meals, hamburger, chicken, ribs and steak. The waitress was very engaging and we had a great time with her!
Home early and hopefully early to bed to catch up on some sleep!
Pretty Christmas lights too.
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